Eighteen months after the 2023 presidential election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has addressed concerns regarding the timing of the result announcement made in the early hours of March 1, 2023.

In that election, President Bola Tinubu, representing the All Progressives Congress (APC), was declared the winner with 8,794,726 votes, defeating his rivals: Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).

The announcement, made by INEC Chairman Professor Mahmood Yakubu at approximately 2 a.m. on Wednesday, March 1, led to questions from some Nigerians who wondered why the results were declared during the early hours instead of the daytime.

Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the INEC Chairman, responded by explaining that during presidential elections, Nigeria is treated as a single constituency. This means the collation of results from across the entire country is a lengthy process.

He emphasized that the process involves waiting for results from polling units, wards, local governments, and states, all of which must be presented at the national level in Abuja.

“The Chairman had to wait for 36 returning officers, including those from remote areas such as Sokoto and Maiduguri, to present their results as required by law,” Oyekanmi explained.

He also clarified that neither the Constitution nor the Electoral Act specifies a particular time for announcing election results.

“In a presidential election, the entire country is treated as one constituency. Results are declared at polling units, then collated at the ward, local government, and state levels before being presented in Abuja to the Chief Electoral Commissioner. Many people misunderstood this process and criticized the 2 a.m. announcement,” Oyekanmi said.

Oyekanmi further noted that the INEC Chairman must personally interview the returning officers, questioning them and possibly sending them back if their reports are unsatisfactory.

“Only after all figures from the returning officers, including those from the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), are accepted, can the results be collated and announced. The delay led to claims that we declared the results in the middle of the night,” he added.

He also referenced a similar situation in 2015, stating: “Prof. Attahiru Jega declared the 2015 results around 4 a.m. The constitution does not prescribe a specific time for declaring election results.”